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CNN Live Today

Chaos and Catastrophe in New Orleans; FEMA Briefing

Aired September 01, 2005 - 11:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Daryn Kagan. We continue our coverage now of Hurricane Katrina and the aftermath.
We are looking at the chaos and the catastrophe. New Orleans descending further into lawlessness and disorder as tens of thousands trying to escape these unbearable conditions. Let's now take a look at the latest developments.

Reports of gunfire disrupted the evacuation of hurricane victims from the New Orleans Superdome this morning. But the National Guard says the transfer of evacuees to the Astrodome in Houston was not suspended.

President Bush is urging zero tolerance for the looting and lawlessness that has erupted in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The president also tried to reassure frustrated hurricane victims that more federal help is on the way.

A little bit of encouraging news out of New Orleans. The flow of water from Lake Pontchartrain has come to a standstill. In fact, the Army Corps of Engineers says water is actually slowly flowing out of the city. The corps is still trying to repair several breaches in the levee system.

Once again, our CNN correspondents are in position along the Gulf Coast and beyond, from Houston to New Orleans to Biloxi. And we're going to hear from many of them in this hour.

We're going to begin in New Orleans, where the story continues to be chaos and menace. It seems to be ever present as those floodwaters. There is lawlessness, looting and gunfire, and that growing frustration fueling even greater concerns.

Our CNN producer, Jim Spellman, joins us by pay phone from New Orleans, Canal Street.

Jim, good morning once again.

JIM SPELLMAN, CNN PRODUCER: Hi, Daryn.

We've just gotten more -- CNN's Chris Lawrence is actually in the convention center right now. And he's just gotten word to us that there are many, many dead bodies. And while they were there, they even saw a baby die.

KAGAN: Let me just jump in here for a second. Talk about the convention center, where it is, and why there are so many people at that particular site, and the situation there.

SPELLMAN: Sure. The convention center was the secondary place where people were to go. The first being the Superdome. And thousands of people are there. They slept outside. The inside of the convention center is just crammed.

It hugs the Mississippi River. It's in a dry part of town. It did not flood. And the scene there is unbelievable and deteriorating quickly.

KAGAN: This is an area that, just like the Superdome, people are trying to be evacuated from?

SPELLMAN: They are, but there's -- we've seen absolutely no FEMA, National Guard, police presence of any sort. People are awaiting boats or buses that we have no information and they have no information they come -- or when they may come. They have no food, they have no water.

And what's starting to become clear is the divide. There are hotel guests here on Canal Street. The Fairmont Hotel just evacuated. All the guests walked down the center of Canal Street to get on buses which they had waiting for them to take them out of town. The local citizens have not gotten that at the convention center, certainly.

KAGAN: So when you say a divide, do you mean an economic divide, a -- what type of divide are you talking about?

SPELLMAN: Clearly an economic divide. People that were paying. Hotel guests have people looking out for them, people coordinating buses just for them.

You know, regular people on the street can't get on these buses, only the hotel guests. People that are from here are left to fend -- you know, largely fend for themselves at this point, at the convention center anyway. And more people are streaming down to the convention center, down Canal Street as we speak.

KAGAN: And are they doing that because just word is spreading that that's where you're supposed to go, or are they being encouraged to go there?

SPELLMAN: Well, it's hard to say. There's very little communications. And I haven't heard anybody listening to a radio or anything like that.

It seems like it's just word of mouth. And from where we are on Canal Street, you can't get to the Superdome without going through about chest-high water. But you can go south towards the river to the convention center.

So that just seems to be the way -- the way that people are going. And it's starting -- I think it's starting to hit a lot of people.

I was just speaking with a woman here whose home was in the Ninth Ward, which was destroyed. And, you know, I asked her, what is she doing to do? And all she could say is, "I don't know, I'm going to have to start all over somewhere else."

KAGAN: Yes, that's a story we're hearing over and over again, thousands of times.

CNN producer Jim Spellman, joining us from Canal Street in New Orleans.

Right now, we're going to go to Baton Rouge, not that far away from New Orleans. This is a news conference with state and local officials. Let's listen in.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

JEFF LEDUFF, BATON ROUGE POLICE: ... to us what their mailing address might be. We're going to take care of the good people and we're going to identify the bad people.

We are here to tell you facts. Fact: we have arrested one person associated with the displaced people. One. And it was for a crime he committed, and he went to jail.

All these other things that you're hearing, there's no validity to them. We -- when I say "we," I'm speaking for all of law enforcement, the Baton Rouge Police department, the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff's Office, the Constable's Office, LSU and Southern, and anything else that is commissioned in this area.

We are in a joint effort. We are working to provide services for both the citizens of this community and the displaced people in this community. And we're going to go about our business the same way that we've been doing.

We are not going home. We are not shutting down. We're going to provide the protection that this community has become used to and deserves.

We tell you, trust us in this matter. We are going to take care of the problems that exist.

We have help on the way. We have federal assistance coming. And we're going to -- we're going to work jointly through this matter.

People are coming to the table. We need you to come to the table. There will be no situations that happens in this community that the mayor will not let you know about.

Everything that is involved with public safety is working to make sure that Baton Rouge remains the Baton Rouge that you know. So trust us in this adventure, stay with us. And patience, that's what we ask.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Mayor, on behalf of the legislative delegation, I just want to join in your representation of the people of Baton Rouge that our situation here is under control. And people need to recognize that the bywords are "patience and patience and patience," and recognize that efforts are being made in our community to look forward, at this point. Because we are going to bear a great burden on behalf of the entire state as people come into Baton Rouge from the south and people look to Baton Rouge to be the springboard for the future, and for recognizing that when the water drains and when people are finally relocated, that our community is going to be one that is going to have to respond.

And the efforts that are under way with federal and state officials and local officials are beginning that process of looking forward and recognizing the responsibilities that we are going to have. The discussions that we have had with law enforcement individuals and the federal government assure us that there is going to be more than adequate assistance...

KAGAN: We're going to listen in to two news conferences at once, the local officials speaking at Baton Rouge, also FEMA officials also speaking in Baton Rouge.

Let's listen to FEMA right now.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

DAVID FUKUTOMI, FEMA: ... sort through that. And we need your help to make sure that we're getting the accurate information not only out, but that we're hearing about specifics about the situation as it develops.

We're establishing a unified command on the ground forward at the Superdome to help provide for a coordinated command-and-control effort there to provide the emergency assistance. General Anro (ph) is en route from Northcom, there to assess the situation and begin those efforts.

In Mississippi, we wanted to let you know that we've begun food and water air drops there of all types of materials, food, water, MREs, and other types of essential supplies to begin bringing that vitally-needed aid to those people that have been impacted in Mississippi as well. So we're focussing on the needs of the victims from the entire event.

Obviously, again, we're acknowledging the critical situation at the Superdome and focusing special attention there to make sure we have the right elements there to bring federal support.

This afternoon, we'll have a briefing with more detailed information about the federal response and the type of assets that we're pulling in place there.

Thank you very much.

QUESTION: Can you spell your last name?

FUKUTOMI: Sure. David Fukutomi. Last name, F-U-K-U-T-O-M-I.

Thank you. KAGAN: All right. That was just a brief statement by FEMA official David Fukutomi, telling us that more information coming from FEMA later in the day.

Earlier than that, we were listening to local officials in Baton Rouge, pretty much trying to reassure the local public there that they can -- that they can do what they can do to try to get the situation there calm.

Here now is the mayor of Baton Rouge. Let's listen in to him.

MAYOR MELVIN HOLDEN, BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA: We will not let it become a lawless town. We're not going to tolerate criminals. We're going to put the criminals where they belong.

And then as a secondary note, for those in Baton Rouge who may be prone to committing crimes, don't think we're going to take our eyes off of you because we have other people in here. Law enforcement in this town will be universal. If you choose to join in the process, get ready to be processed into jail, because we're not going to tolerate it.

And so we hope that this will calm down any fears that have been there and know that we will remain on top of this situation 24 hours a day.

Thank you very much.

QUESTION: I have a question for the chief. We just got word that police officers are escorting people...

KAGAN: Once again, we're listening into local officials from Baton Rouge, also East Baton Rouge. That was the mayor of East Baton Rouge, Kip Holden, that was speaking there at the end.

A big challenge, because, basically, because of people fleeing from the storm and all the damage from the southern part of the state, they have come into Baton Rouge just in the last couple days. Officials say the population of Baton Rouge has doubled, and there's concern that they don't have the resources to handle what's happening in that town.

Let's move on to the Mississippi coast now, where bulldozers and backhoes are working today. They're trying to clear roads so that big rigs can bring supplies into that area. That's where we find Ted Rowlands. He is in Biloxi, Mississippi, once again this morning.

Ted, good morning.

TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn.

We're seeing real signs of progress in terms of aid coming to not only Biloxi, but the Mississippi Gulf Coast and some of these more remote towns that are cut off. As you mentioned, because the infrastructure has been so compromised, National Guard has come in and has taken over security for these towns. And they are really making a difference.

Security was up to the local police. They'd been working around the clock for the last three days, and they're getting some help. There's also some medical aid here and much needed food and water for those folks that need it.

That said, the search and rescue effort continues as well. Crews from around the country that specialize in collapsed building identifications are out at it again.

Unfortunately, they are coming back with more and more bodies, and counting more bodies. And some of them they are processing, some they are leaving behind and marking with spray paint to be dealt with later.

Again, there are those, though, that rode out the storm and rode out and survived. We've come across a couple amazing stories, including Harvey Showes (ph).

His boat, the Luna Sea, ended up about a quarter-mile inland in a debris pile that was full of -- it was basically on top of a house, or what was left of a house. Harvey broke down in the Gulf. He was trying to get to a spot, a safe spot.

He got caught up in Katrina and ended up getting the ride of his life. He is banged up, but he's alive.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It slammed. It hit something so hard that you were like a projectile shooting across a wheelhouse. And it knocked me down -- I mean, to the deck. And I'd get up and sometimes I didn't think I was going to get up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROWLANDS: An amazing story. Harvey Showes (ph) survived with his two dogs. Unfortunately, there are many other stories that are not ending up this way as the search and rescue effort continues.

And they are turning up more dead bodies. The official -- or unofficial body count now at about 180. It is expected to go up over the next few days -- Daryn.

KAGAN: So Ted, that man and those two dogs were on the boat the whole time and survived to tell the story?

ROWLANDS: Yes. He had a problem with his engine. It failed. And the next thing you know, he was trying to avoid the storm.

He found himself right in the middle of it. And he says he got tossed around. He ended up banging up against structures as they were collapsing, and then he came to rest right on top of what was a building in about a quarter-mile inland.

And we actually saw the boat, figured it was empty, and just started shooting it. And out popped Harvey with his amazing story of survival.

KAGAN: And it looks like that's home for him for now, because, really, where else is he going to go?

ROWLANDS: Yes. He has a little issue. He says his son is helping him out. And they may end up leaving the boat there, at least for the short term.

KAGAN: All right. Ted Rowlands from Biloxi. Thank you for that incredible story.

Our complete coverage of Katrina's aftermath continues with much more in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: Let's give you a heads up of where we're going with our coverage. In about 40, 45 minutes, we expect a news briefing from the White House. This as President Bush is in the face of the most devastating national emergency since September 11.

The president is saying that rebuilding in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina will take years. The road is going to be difficult. There's a lot of questions about gas prices. A lot of questions.

Our Elaine Quijano joining us now from the White House with all of that -- Elaine.

ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Daryn.

President Bush, the White House has announced, will be getting an up-close look at the devastation rocked by Hurricane Katrina when he visits the Gulf Coast region tomorrow. That announcement coming just this morning.

But Press Secretary Scott McClellan told reporters today that the president wants to make as small a footprint as possible on his trip to those areas hit hardest by the hurricane, areas that will likely include, of course, the Alabama and Mississippi coast, as well as New Orleans. McClellan also said that the president's visit will probably include at least a couple of stops on the ground, as well as aerial tours.

Yesterday, you're seeing what the president saw as he returned to Washington after cutting short his vacation in Texas. He got a bird's eye view of the damage as Air Force One detoured over those affected regions.

Now, the president also met with members of his cabinet, part of an interagency task force to report to him the latest on the hurricane relief efforts. And in an interview on ABC's "Good Morning America," he says he understands the anxiety of people on the ground, and he addressed the problems of price gouging and looting.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think there ought to be zero tolerance of people breaking the law during an emergency such as this, whether it be looting or price gouging at the gasoline pump or taking advantage of charitable giving or insurance fraud. And I've made that clear to our attorney general.

Citizens ought to be working together. I mean, if people need water and food, we're going to do everything we can to get them water and food. But, you know, this is a -- it's very important for the citizens in all affected areas to take personal responsibility and assume kind of a civic sense of responsibility so that the situation doesn't get out of hand, so people don't exploit the vulnerable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

QUIJANO: Now, also today, the White House announced it is enlisting the help, once again, of two former presidents, George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton, to help raise money for hurricane relief. Now, we're told this will likely be akin to the roles undertaken months ago when the president previously asked both men to lead the tsunami relief efforts.

And the president, by the way, we should tell you, this afternoon will meet with the former presidents in the Oval Office later this afternoon.

A couple other things to mention as well. The president met with Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, also the Joint Chiefs chairman, Richard Myers. The president later today will be meeting with Alan Greenspan, and then get a briefing from his economic team to get a preliminary assessment on the economic impact of Hurricane Katrina -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Elaine Quijano at the White House. Elaine, thank you for all those updates.

Much more on that ahead -- 12:00 noon Eastern is when we expect that daily briefing out of the White House. You'll see that live here on CNN.

Meanwhile, sometimes to get the best picture of what's happening you go far away, as in outer space. One of the best ways to understand the power of this hurricane and what is happening right now come from the satellite images. Our Chad Myers, our meteorologist, shows us and analyzes these amazing photographs.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Some disturbing pictures from the NOAA airplane yesterday. In fact, I want to zoom into this area here, right around Bay St. Louis. In fact, just a little east there, Pass Christian.

Here's the beach, the Gulf of Mexico here. The wave, as we call it, the storm surge, well inland. Even three or four blocks.

Look at the devastation here right along the beach. Very few things still standing. There's a pool, but no house attached to the foundation there.

As we fly you up lake view, ocean view, right on up to Everett Street here, this is what happened to all of those pieces and all those things that were in that house. That's how far the wave went. That's where the wave stopped. That's the storm surge that we talked about so often following Everett Street just off towards the west here.

Eventually, you'd get over to the bridge. The bridge over to Bay St. Louis no longer exists. It's all knocked down as well.

Now you get back down here. And I want to just kind of show a little contrast here.

A house, a big house here. A resort that's set up on stilts, no damage whatsoever. Another thing that really wasn't damaged because it's technically on stilts, the water tower here in Pass Christian. The water just went right through. Didn't hit it with a direct hit.

One more thing I want to show you now. We're going to get back into New Orleans.

This is New Orleans yesterday. And I want you to notice the two different colors, extremely different colors, one side wet, one side dry.

That right there is the 17th Street Canal. The levee breach was on the east side of the canal. And that's the way the water went, and then flooded right on down to the city, into mid city, and right on down south, for that matter, almost, almost all the way to the French Quarter.

Now, this is the highest ground in New Orleans, well, at least in this area. This, because right up here is the Mississippi River. You see that little line right there. This is dry.

Most of the French Quarter still not that wet. A couple of feet, but not the feet back up here toward the north and toward the northeast.

One more stop for you. If you've heard about the New Orleans Jazzfest, it happens at City Park, the fairgrounds, the racetrack. All completely under water.

Daryn, back to you.

KAGAN: All right. Chad, thank you for that explanation.

Straight ahead, some key elements in our coverage. We're going to revisit the story of the Louisiana National Guard unit that's been serving in Iraq for about a year. They're about to come home. What do they face when they do that?

We'll be checking in with our Jamie McIntyre at the Pentagon with efforts from the military.

And also, a heartwarming moment. Yet another reunion with our Carol Lin at our relief desk.

That's all just ahead after this break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: We are getting new taped pictures into us here at CNN. These are coming from Biloxi, Mississippi.

The picture right there pretty much tells the story. Biloxi so famous before the storm for the number of casinos along the Gulf Coast there. So many of those casinos have been destroyed. And that paints a picture of the huge task that they face ahead along the Mississippi Gulf Coast, not just rebuilding homes, but an industry that sustained not just the Gulf Coast, but brought in about $500,000 a day in tax revenue to this very poor state.

Much more ahead on what's happening along the Gulf Coast in just a minute.

First, though, we want to talk about what is underneath a hurricane, splintered wood and shattered glass. There is a heartbreaking human tragedy unfolding. Our National Correspondent Gary Tuchman shows us one example.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Market Street in Waveland, Mississippi, no longer looks anything like a street. Every home anywhere near here has been destroyed.

We walk with 17-year-old Rebecca McIntosh across what were the tops of homes.

(on camera): Do you know who used to live in this house we're standing in?

REBECCA MCINTOSH, SURVIVOR: I think this is the roof to the house that was right there, that an old friend of mine used to live in.

TUCHMAN: I mean, this doesn't look like a neighborhood. Be careful. Watch your step.

MCINTOSH: No. It really doesn't.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): From the roof, we see the house Rebecca and her grandmother evacuated, a home that she saw from afar after the hurricane, but hasn't yet seen close up. Her grandmother couldn't come with us because the walk was too strenuous.

(on camera): So these are your neighbors?

MCINTOSH: This is my neighbors'.

TUCHMAN: I sure hope they weren't inside there.

MCINTOSH: Yes, me too. I'm not sure if they evacuated or not.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): And then we see Rebecca's house.

(on camera): Is that black thing over there, was that your roof?

MCINTOSH: That was our roof.

TUCHMAN: And it blew all the way down there.

(voice-over): The only part of the home that isn't destroyed is the mailbox.

(on camera): Is there anything that you left behind that's important to you that maybe we can look for right now?

MCINTOSH: I had a lot of collectibles I had to leave behind and a lot of things that meant a lot to me, but there was just no room to bring them.

TUCHMAN: Like what did you leave behind that meant a lot to you?

MCINTOSH: Like, a lot of porcelain dolls that can't be replaced.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): As we look inside the house that was the center of this teenager's life, we find some of her keepsakes.

(on camera): Is that one of them?

MCINTOSH: Yes, this is one of my Barbie dolls that I collected, the Millennium Edition.

TUCHMAN: Here's your guitar and here is -- what's this?

MCINTOSH: It's actually a Mardi Gras doll that I got when I was, like, seven.

TUCHMAN: I don't know if this has any sentimental value to it.

MCINTOSH: Not as much as the other stuff, but, hey.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): We leave the house and trek back to Rebecca's grandmother. Our producer shows her the box of keepsakes we brought back.

CATHY EVERARD, SURVIVOR: God bless you hope (ph).

TUCHMAN (on camera): That's fine. It's OK, I'll take it. EVERARD: I know there's other people unappreciated. You guys are so blessed. Oh, God. I don't know what this world would do without people like you. I don't know.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): But there is a lot more heartache. Cathy Everard can't find two of her sons.

EVERARD: I am so worried. I just buried my sister last week. And I've already lost my daughter. And now I don't know where my sons are or how they're faring, or what they're doing, or nothing. Help. I wish they would contact me.

TUCHMAN (on camera): Tell us their names.

EVERARD: Kevin McIntosh. He lives in Kiln, Mississippi. And Brian McIntosh lives here in Waveland. But I haven't been able to find either one of them.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): In this neighborhood, there is no shortage of anguish.

Gary Tuchman, CNN, Waveland, Mississippi.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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